This publication of Prakrta-rasa Sata-dusani by Sri Srimad Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada, with the Anuvrtti Commentary of Srila B.G Narasingha Maharaja is being presented in five parts. Part one begins with a Preface by Svami B.V. Giri and a Forward by Sri Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada.
PREFACE
Although obscure to many devotees today, Prakrta-rasa Sata-dusani was well known amongst the Gaudiya Vaisnava community during the time of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada. It was relished by the rupanuga Vaisnavas and despised by the Sahajiya communities for its condemnations of their mundane practices committed in the name of suddha-bhakti (pure devotion).
Prakrta-rasa Sata-dusani was first written in 1917 by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati and published in the Sajjana-tosani magazine (9th edition, 19th Volume). During his lifetime it was republished in the Gaudiya magazine and in the book Vraja-mandala Parikrama (1935).
We now live in a time when Sahajiyaism is no longer confined to Bengal, Orissa and Vrndavana. The pollution of prakrta-rasa has now crossed the borders of India and found its way to foreign lands. Thus, Prakrta-rasa Sata-dusani is as relevant now as it ever was, if not more so.
As in the time of Srila Sarasvati Thakura, the true followers of Sri Rupa Gosvami will appreciate the cautionary advice given in this book. Similarly, they will also value the contribution of Srila Bhakti Gaurava Narasingha Maharaja in the form of his Anuvrtti commentary.
Nonetheless, those pretenders that dupe themselves into thinking that they can make spiritual advancement by eliminating the scientific step-by-step process of bhakti, will reject the intelligent advice found in Prakrta-rasa Sata-dusani. In this regard, there is a famous Sanskrit maxim:
ajnana-varasandena
prasupto nara-gardabhah
kah samarthah prabodham tam
jnana-bheri-satair api
"Who is capable of waking, even with hundreds of drums of knowledge, that ass of a man who sleeps with the eunuch of ignorance?"
This publication of Prakrta-rasa Sata-dusani will surely find favour with the predecessor acaryas and the followers of Sri Rupa Gosvami.
Sri Rupanuga-dasanudasa
Svami B.V. Giri
INTRODUCTION
Amongst the higher classes of men in this world, there are three paths that traverse through the kingdom of transcendental beliefs. These are generally known as karma, jnana and bhakti. The path of karma is the process for attaining transitory pleasures that are enjoyed by the jivas ensnared in material bondage. The path of jnana is the renunciation of temporary results and provincial interests in order to discover the undifferentiated Brahman. The path known as bhakti transcends both karma, jnana and material nature completely, in order to cultivate activities that are favorable in serving Krsna.
On the path of bhakti there is a clear distinction between devotional practice (sadhana) and the achievement of devotional practice (sadhya). It is understood that there are three stages – devotional practice, the awakening of bhava (devotional sentiments) and prema (pure love for Sri Krsna). As one cultivates and acquires knowledge about the goal of bhakti, the various stages of bhava and love of Krsna, problems may arise. The process of becoming free of these problems is known as anartha-nivrtti (the removal of unwanted elements). The conceptions established in this work (Prakrta-rasa Sata-dusani) can be found in the supremely wonderful pastimes of Sri Gauranga-sundara as well as those of the Gosvamis, who are His eternal associates in those pastimes.
- Sri Siddhanta Sarasvati
PRAKRTA RASA SATA DUSANI
(Part One, Verses 1-17)
(1)
prakrta cestate bhai kabhu rasa haya na
jadiya prakrta-rasa suddha-bhakta gaya na
O brother! By material endeavors rasa can never appear. Pure devotees never sing about the mundane rasa of this material world.
(2)
prakrta-rasera siksa-bhiksa-sisye caya na
rati vina yei rasa taha guru deya na
A disciple never wishes to beg for instructions regarding material rasa. The guru never gives rasa that is bereft of rati, (divine attachment to Sri Krsna).
ANUVRTTI
Although material engagements remotely resemble the transcendental rasa or lila of Sri Krsna, it has been concluded by self-realized spiritual masters that material engagement never produces rasa. No amount of ignorance produces knowledge, no amount of darkness produces light, and no amount of material engagement produces Krsna consciousness.
Would-be gurus in search of name, fame and material gains often encourage their disciples to enjoy material nature, but a bona-fide guru never encourages or instructs his disciple how to increase material enjoyment or to expand the affairs of the material world. Mundane family life is, by and large, a unit of selfish interests focused around the bodily concept of life and before one can make spiritual advancement one must abandon such a false pretext of life. Giving up attachments to the bodily concept of life, a devotee should become attached to Sri Krsna above all else.
vapur-adisu yo ‘pi ko ‘pi va
gunato ‘sani yatha tatha-vidhah
tad ayam tava pada-padmayor
aham adyaiva maya samarpitah
“O my dear Lord, I may be living within a body of a human being, or as a demigod, but whatever mode of life I do not mind, because these bodies are simply by-products of the three modes of material nature, and I, who am in possession of these bodies, am surrendering myself unto You.” (Sri Yamunacarya, Stotra-ratna 49)
However, pseudo-disciples approach spiritual life as yet another means of increasing their material enjoyment. Thinking that God is there to fulfill their material desires, they ask for blessings from the spiritual master to become materially opulent. When the pseudo-guru and the pseudo-disciple are brought together they make a complete mockery of Krsna consciousness and of the bona-fide disciplic succession of gurus and disciples.
(3)
nama rasa dui vastu bhakta kabhu jane na
nama rase bheda ache, bhakta kabhu bale na
A devotee does not consider the Holy Name and divine rasa to be two separate things. Thus, at no time does a devotee exclaim, “There is a difference between the Holy Name and rasa.”
(4)
‘aham-mama’ bhava-sattve nama kabhu haya na
bhoga-buddhi na chadile aprakrta haya na
The Holy Name never appears to those that are conditioned to think in terms of ‘I’ and ‘mine.’ The stage of transcendence cannot be reached if the enjoying attitude is not abandoned.
ANUVRTTI
There is a certain class of men that consider the Holy Name of Krsna, and the pastimes of Krsna to be of two different substances. Although giving some recognition to the potency of krsna-nama, these persons contend that one can only realize the perfection of bhakti-rasa by exclusively hearing and discussing the lilas of Krsna and particularly the rasa-lila or the amorous pastimes of the Lord with the gopis (cowherd girls of Vrndavana). Such persons give little attention to the necessity of purely chanting the Holy Name (suddha-nama) and give more attention to the process of lila-kirtana, rasa-katha and smaranam. In a word, these persons have been categorized as sva-kuhaka, or self-deceivers. What is unknown to the self-deceivers is that krsna-nama reveals rasa in proportion to one’s being freed from anarthas or material contamination in the heart.
Thakura Bhaktivinoda in his Bhajana-rahasya describes four types of anarthas and four categories within each type. The four types of anarthas are:
1) tattva-vibhrama – illusion about spiritual knowledge
2) hrdaya-daurbalya – weakness of heart
3) aparadha – offenses
4) asat-trsna – material desires
Illusion about spiritual knowledge is of four types:
1) sva-tattva bhrama – illusion about one’s original position as a tatastha-jiva
2) para-tattva bhrama – illusion about nature of the Supreme Lord
3) sadhya-sadhana bhrama – illusion about the processes of sadhana and prema-bhakti
4) virodhi-visaya bhrama – illusion regarding subjects unfavorable to Krsna consciousness
Weakness of heart is of four types:
1) tucchasakti – attachment to objects not related to Krsna
2) kutinati – deceitfulness
3) matsaryam – enviousness
4) pratistha – desire for fame
Offenses are of four types:
1) krsna-svarupa-aparadha – offenses towards the form of the Lord
2) nama-aparadha – offenses towards the Holy Name of the Lord
3) krsna-tadiya-aparadha – offenses to the devotees
4) jiva-aparadha – offenses to other living entities
Material desires are of four types:
1) aihikesvaisana – desire for material objects
2) para-trikesu – desire for heavenly comforts
3) bhuti-vancha – desire for mystic powers
4) mumuksa – desire for liberation
In material life one sees everything as an object of enjoyment. That self-centered world-view is called aham-mameti – “everything is mine, everything is for my enjoyment, I am the center of existence.” In this stage of consciousness one cannot relish transcendental mellows (rasa). It is necessary to first become free from the spirit of enjoyment – to see one’s self as servant rather than master.
Krsna-nama, when chanted without offense under the guidance of a bona-fide spiritual master, purifies the heart of the conditioned soul and simultaneously reveals bhakti-rasa accordingly.
namnam akari bahudha nija-sarva-saktis
tatrapita niyamitah smarane na kalah
etadrsi tava krpa bhagavan mamapi
durdaivam idrsam ahajani nanuragah
“O my Lord, in Your Holy Name there is all good fortune for the living entity, and therefore You have many Names, such as Krsna and Govinda, by which You expand Yourself. You have invested all Your transcendental potencies in those Names, and there are no hard and fast rules for remembering Them. My Lord, although You bestow such mercy upon the conditioned souls by liberally teaching Your Holy Names, I am so unfortunate that I commit offenses while chanting the Holy Name, and therefore I do not achieve attachment for chanting.” (Siksastakam 2)
tac-ca nama-rupa-guna-lilamaya-sabdanam srotasparsah.
prathamam namnah sravanam-antah-karana-suddhyartham-peksam. suddhe cantah-karane rupa-sravavena tad-udaya-yogyata bhavati.samyagudite ca rupe gunanam sphuranam sampadyeta, sampanne ca gunanam sphurane parikara-vaisisthyena tad-vaisisthyam sampadyate tatas-tesu
nama-rupa-guna-parikaresu samyak sphuritesu lilanam sphuranam susthu bhavati.
“Hearing of the Holy Name, form, qualities and pastimes of the Lord and His devotees is called sravana. The practice of sadhana-bhakti depends on hearing the Holy Name of the Lord. It begins with sravana, which purifies the heart of a devotee. This hearing process grants liberation from the filthiness of sense gratification, and purifies the heart. In this way, by hearing transcendental sound about the form of Sri Krsna, gradually the complete form of the Lord begins to awaken within the heart. After this the qualities of the Lord arise within the heart. As the qualities of the Lord fully manifest themselves, the different specific aspects of the Lord’s service and pastimes gradually awaken. In this way, the Holy Name reveals the Lord’s form, qualities, and pastimes in all their splendor and beauty with all their different branches.” (Krama-sandarbha 7.5.18)
However, when one neglects becoming freed from anarthas and instead engages in lila-kirtana and rasa-katha, the result is the opposite of purification. One makes offences. Due to offences anarthas are increased, and one’s prospect for perfection in devotional life is greatly diminished, if not completely destroyed.
(5)
prakrta jadera bhoge krsna-seva haya na
jada-vastu kona-o kale aprakrta haya na
While finding pleasure in mundane matter, service to Krsna can never be conducted. Mundane objects can never be considered as spiritual at any time.
(6)
jada-satta vartamane cit kabhu haya na
jada-vastu cit haya bhakte kabhu bale na
Spiritual consciousness can never be present in a mundane condition. A devotee never says that any mundane object is actually spiritual.
(7)
jadiya visaya-bhoga bhakta kabhu kare na
jada-bhoga, krsna-seva – kabhu sama haya na
A devotee never performs mundane deeds to please his material senses. Material pleasure and service to Krsna are never the same.
ANUVRTTI
Krsna consciousness can never manifest in the mundane aptitude of the conditioned soul and therefore it is necessary to undergo the process of purification. Without purification one’s endeavors in spiritual life are a waste of time.
atah sri krsna namadi
na bhaved grahyam indriyaih
sevonmukhe hi jihvadau
svayam eva sphuraty adah
“The Holy Name, form, qualities, and pastimes of Sri Krsna are divine and transcendental. They cannot be experienced by material senses. The Lord manifests Himself spontaneously on the tongue of a devotee who is eager to serve Him.” (Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu 1.2.109)
The mood of the pseudo-devotee is to enjoy Krsna. Such persons hear about Krsna, but simply go on increasing material desires for kanaka (wealth), kamini (women) and pratistha (fame). However, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu strongly warns those interested in spiritual advancement not to go down that path.
na danam na janam na sundarim
kavitam va jagadisa kamaye
mama janmani janmanisvare
bhavatad bhaktir ahaituki tvayi
“Oh Lord, I have no desire to accumulate wealth, nor to enjoy beautiful women. Nor do I want any number of followers. What I want only is the causeless mercy of Your devotional service in my life, birth after birth.” (Siksastakam 4)
Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura has added to this warning as follows:
kanaka kamini pratistha baghini
chadiyachi jare sei ta’ vaisnava
“One becomes a Vaisnava when he has freed himself from the clutches of the tigress of wealth, women and worldly prestige.” (Vaisnava Ke – 11)
The pure devotee of Krsna does not do anything that is not for the pleasure of Krsna. That is pure devotional service.
anyabhilasita-sunyam
jnana-karma anavrtam
anukulyena krsnanu-
silanam bhaktir-uttama
“Performing activities that are exclusively for the pleasure of Krsna are known as uttama-bhakti, pure devotional service. Such activities are without the desire for material profit, gain or tinged by philosophical speculation.” (Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu, 1.1.11.)
(8)
nija-bhogya kame bhakta ‘prema’ kabhu bale na
‘rase dagamaga acha’ sisye guru bale na
Selfish material desires are never called prema by a devotee. The spiritual master never tells the disciple that, “You are overflowing with divine rasa.”
(9)
‘rase dagamaga ami’, kabhu guru bale na
jadiya rasera katha sisye guru bale na
The spiritual master never says, “I am engrossed in divine rasa.” The spiritual master never engages in talks with his disciples about mundane topics.
(10)
jada-rasa-gane kabhu sreyah keha labhe na
krsnake prakrta bali’ bhakta kabhu gaya na
Nobody can achieve the highest good by glorifying mundane activities. A devotee never declares that Sri Krsna is a mundane personality.
(11)
namake prakrta bali’ krsne jada jane na
krsna-nama-rase bheda suddha-bhakta mane na
Since Krsna cannot be understood through matter, a devotee never says that Krsna’s Holy Name is mundane. A pure devotee never acknowledges any difference between the Holy Name, Sri Krsna and divine rasa.
(12)
nama rase bheda ache, guru siksa deya na
rasa-labha kari’ sese sadhana ta’ haya na
The spiritual master never teaches, “There is a difference between the Holy Name and rasa.” Even upon attaining rasa, ones’ sadhana is never completed.
ANUVRTTI
The Mayavadi guru falsely teaches that he is God and that his disciple is also God. And the pseudo-devotee, posing as guru, claims that he is absorbed in rasa and that his disciple is also absorbed in rasa. Both these categories of gurus and disciples are in ignorance and illusion. Regarding the Mayavadi, it should be understood that the living entity (tatastha-jiva) does not become God at any time. As regards the pseudo-guru, it should be understood that one who has actually attained the highest stage of pure devotional service (rasa) never claims to have done so and certainly never tries to teach his disciple that which is unteachable. In the words of Thakura Bhaktivinoda, “If anyone says that he will teach you the sadhana of rasa, he is an imposter or a fool.” (Caitanya-siksamrta 7.1)
In numerous places in the writings of Thakura Bhaktivinoda and Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, the pseudo-guru has been compared to the she-demon Putana, who offered her poison breast in the hope of killing baby Krsna. The pseudo-guru offers prema-rasa and other such achievements in bhakti that are compared to the poison offered by Putana. One who tastes this poison is most certainly doomed, their devotional creeper being poisoned in its early stage. Therefore the first duty of a sincere devotee is to reject all such she-demon gurus.
However, the pseudo-disciple embraces the foolish proposals of the pseudo-guru and such victims often fall into being initiated into the process of siddha-pranali, to conceive of one’s self as a manjari – a female attendant of Sri Sri Radha-Krsna. Such victims of the pseudo-guru do not realize their misfortune and thus fall into utter ruin. Those who follow the advice of such a pseudo-guru by mentally conceiving of themselves as manjaris, when in fact they are still conditioned by the material modes of nature, fall away from the path of pure devotion and become Sahajiyas, pretenders.
Once, the revered devotee Srila Bhakti Pramoda Puri Maharaja commented that the manjari pretenders will not attain the aprakrta-svarupa (spiritual form) of a gopi or a manjari in their next life – rather they will be born again in the material world as mundane females. Therefore it is better to heed the advice of the verses in Prakrta-rasa Sata-dusani.
(13)
krtrima panthaya name rasodaya haya na
rasa haite krsna-nama vilomete haya na
No one can make rasa manifest in the Holy Name by artificial means. The notion that Krsna’s Holy Name originates from rasa is backwards and incorrect.
(14)
rasa haite rati-sraddha kakhana-i haya na
sraddha haite rati chada bhagavata gaya na
It can never be that rasa is present first and then it becomes rati or sraddha. Rati develops from sraddha – the Bhagavata never sings anything other than this.
ANUVRTTI
It is the common misunderstanding among pseudo-devotees and some neophytes that simply by hearing about higher topics concerning the rasa-lila of Krsna that one will develop attachment for such topics and thus one’s sadhana, or practicing life, will prosper.
Based on the teachings of Srila Thakura Bhaktivinoda, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati is making it very clear in the verses of Prakrta-rasa Sata-dusani that those who think that they can attain rasa without first having attained rati, and prior to that having attained anartha-nivrtti, have understood the process of pure devotional service in reverse. This reverse process can be compared to that of rubbing dry grass against the udder of a cow and expecting to get milk from her mouth. It is simply not possible.
When Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura says above that no one can make rasa appear in the Holy Name by artificial means, he is referring to the pseudo-devotees who sometimes make a show of shedding crocodile tears. However, such show-bottle ecstasy does not produce rasa. Mental imitation of devotion is possible, even without a tinge of pure devotion. The mere display of external characteristics does not prove the presence of pure devotion.
nisarga-picchila-svante
tad abhyasa-pare ‘pi ca
sattvabhasam vinapi syuh
kvapy asru-pulakadayah
“Whenever shedding tears, horripulation, etc. are seen in a person whose heart is soft externally and hard internally, and who is habituated to crying, rapture, etc. even though they do not possess a semblance of divine emotion – such an imitative sentiment should be known as totally unsubstantial and lifeless.” (Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu 2.3.89)
prakrtya sithilam yesam
manah picchilam eva va
tesv-eva sattvikabhasah
prayah samsadi jayate
“Persons whose minds are sithilam and picchilam (soft and slippery) generally manifest such symptoms known as sattvikabhasa during festivals when there is a performance of kirtana.” (Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu 2.3.91)
(15)
rati-yukta rasa chada suddha-bhakta bale na
sadhanete rati rasa, guru kabhu bale na
A pure devotee never speaks of anything other than rasa, graced with rati. The spiritual master never says that rati and rasa are found within sadhana-bhakti.
(16)
bhava-kale ye avastha sadhanagre bale na
vaidhi-sraddha sadhanete raganuga haya na
It is never said that the awakening of bhava appears prior to the practice of sadhana-bhakti. The activities of vaidhi-sraddha (faith only in regulated devotion) can never give rise to raganuga-bhakti.
(17)
bhavera ankura ha’le vidhi ara thake na
raganuga sraddha-matre jata-rati haya na
When bhava manifests, the necessity for following scriptural injunctions no longer prevails. Mere faith in raganuga-bhakti does not give rise to rati.
ANUVRTTI
The following is a statement by Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura:
“We have no objection to the hearing and chanting of Krsna’s lila. Actually, Sri Hari’s lila must be heard and chanted. Then only will the fallen, natural taste for hearing about our own activities and our eagerness to hear useless talks be vanquished. There is no other remedy than this.
“Factually there is no difference between chanting about the Lord’s pastimes and chanting about the Lord’s srngara-rasa. The conditioned jiva who still has anarthas should hear and chant about the pastimes of Lord Gauranga and the childhood pastimes of Krsna. If the unqualified attempt to hear and speak about the confidential pastimes of Sri Sri Radha-Krsna it will not bring auspiciousness to them, rather it will bring misfortune.
“We should hear the Lord’s glories only from Sri Gurudeva or the like, A true devotee will say – ‘I will only hear hari-katha from the holy lips of Sri Gurudeva and I will hear and speak about the Bhagavata that Sukadeva spoke from his lotus mouth. With guru-nistha I will hear and discuss about Krsna’s Name, form, qualities and pastimes according to the path of pure devotion, as taught by Sri Gauranga as I have heard from Gurudeva. I will not hear from anyone else.’
“Hearing and chanting is certainly the best way, but it is not auspicious for anyone and everyone to hear and discuss intimate pastimes. Hearing and discussing the confidential pastimes of Sri Sri Radha-Govinda is the topmost type of worship and our eternal bhajana. However, this type of bhajana should not be taken to the public as it is unfitting and offensive.
“Apana bhajana-katha na kahibe yatha tatha (You must not disclose your confidential mood of bhajana to one and all) – one who desires all good fortune should follow this advice given by the acaryas. In a public assembly of different people we should chant the Holy Name, as well as prayers and songs that are in the mood of servitorship (dasya-rasa). When we have attained the proper qualification and we are in the association of only rasika devotees, then we may hear more intimate songs and at the time of hearing such songs we may confidentially express our own bhajana according to our eternal position (svarupa). If we do otherwise we will attain the opposite result. If these songs must be abandoned to set a standard, then so be it! We must give some benefit to the public. The practice of singing publicly the Lord’s intimate pastimes by those who have not given up sense enjoyment and the desire for wealth are the activities that give Kali an occupation!” (Sri Srila Prabhupader Upadesamrta)
In the tone of simha-guru, Sarasvati Thakura also cautions as follows:
“Those who are barren of the treasure of love for Krsna – propelled by duplicity – declare to the whole world their false attainment of prema, although in reality, by an external display of prema or by announcing it to one and all, it is positively impossible for such hypocrite destitutes who are deprived of the wealth of krsna-prema to ever attain it. To make their great fortune known to everybody, adepts of Prakrta-Sahajiyaism often expose to each other insincere external symptoms of prema (such as shedding of tears). Rather than calling such hypocrite Sahajiyas as premika, real suddha-bhaktas go as far as to completely reject their association, knowing it to destroy bhakti. Suddha-bhaktas never teach one to designate such persons as ‘bhaktas’ thus equaling them with suddha-bhaktas. At the rise of genuine prema, the jiva hides her glory and strives for krsna-bhajana.
“The hypocrite Prakrta-Sahajiya party, in their greed for wealth, women and fame (kanaka-kamini-pratistha), offend suddha-bhaktas by labeling them as darsanik-pandita (great philosophers), tattva-vit (ontology experts), or suksma-darsi (acute observers), and in turn they adorn themselves with the titles rasika, bhajananandi, bhagavatottama (uttama-bhagavata), lila-rasa-panonmatta (intoxicated by drinking sweet mellows of lila), raganugiya-sadhakagraganya (the foremost aspirants on the path of raganuga-bhakti), rasajna (the knowers of rasa), rasika-cudamani (unsurpassed rasikas) etc.
“Having contaminated bhajana-pranali with the waves of their own materialistic emotions, they become attached to abominable practices; what they actually adore in themselves is pseudo-Vaisnavism. These kinds of preachers go to describe aprakrta-rasa, making their respective mundane emotions a part and parcel of krsna-seva. Unaware of aprakrta vipralambha-rasa, they take prakrta-sambhoga, which in essence is a perverted reflection of rasa (virasa), as actual rasa.” (Cc. Antya 20.28, Anubhasya)
The pseudo-disciple will say that, “Gurudeva is giving prema,” and such pseudo-devotees canvas everyone and anyone to come and accept this most rare gift. “Gurudeva is so merciful,” they exclaim. However, their so-called gift of prema is like the musk that gypsies sell during Kumbha Mela. At first glance the musk looks and smells like the genuine thing. But upon closer examination it is discovered that the so-called musk is simply cheaply scented cow-dung rolled into balls and covered with goatskin. Their imitation gift of prema is similar to this.
